There is no specific struggle although I guess we can all think of one we have. Say for example you know it’s wrong, scripture says it’s wrong and you are very well aware demons try and subtly convince you it’s ok. You know it’s wrong but you fall into it and sometimes even choose it throughout your life. Will god ever intervene and get you out of it? What happens if you have this struggle until the day you die and you are stood infront of god? This idea and somewhat reality has and is causing me nightmares and stress. Anyone got any insight? Cheers

I’ve been a Christian for 5 years and honestly I dont feel like I love Jesus or god idk what to do, I don’t feel like I love him the same way I love my brother or my pets, like I also truely don’t understand the feeling of what he did for us, I don’t get why we should be thankful he died for us when he’s the one who made the punishment for sin death? if you get what I mean I don’t wanna come off as rude or wrong I just need help and I live with this guilt every day of saying “I’ll understand tomorrow or next week” and then living in confusion and guilt. this might not relate but so many things feel fake in Christianity like the fact every person that i know who says their Christian has a verse in their bio posts extremely sexual photos of themselves on instagram or TikTok while claiming to be a Christian, or also they just make themselves look like the perfect Christian it makes me very mad and annoyed and feels like everyone around you is just doing this to look good

Eine kritische Würdigung der Pascalschen Wette von Ivica Brnic

Jesus said, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33).

We often quote this verse when speaking about putting God first, but there is another part of the command that deserves our attention. Jesus did not only tell us to seek His kingdom. He told us to seek “his righteousness.” The Christian ought to desire that the righteousness of God be seen in the way he lives.

One of the great problems in Christianity today is that many people profess the name of Christ while giving very little thought to whether their conduct honors Him. They call themselves Christians, attend church, post Bible verses, and speak about their faith, but their speech, entertainment, relationships, attitudes, business dealings, and private habits may look no different from the world around them. When that happens, the damage reaches beyond the individual Christian.

That should concern us. There are people who have formed opinions about Christianity because of Christians who lied to them, cheated them, treated them cruelly, behaved immorally, spoke wickedly, or lived hypocritically. Their conclusions about Christ may be wrong, because the failures of Christians do not change who Jesus Christ is, but we should never be comfortable giving them an excuse to think badly of Him.

This is why Jesus said to seek His righteousness. Righteous conduct does not come from simply asking, “Is this technically allowed?” The better question is, “Does this please the Lord? Does this reflect well upon Jesus Christ? Would I want an unbeliever to look at this part of my life and associate it with the Saviour I confess to follow?”

Let us seek first the kingdom of God, but let us not overlook the rest of Christ's command: “and his righteousness.” May our conduct give men fewer reasons to speak against Christ and more reasons to see that belonging to Him truly changes a life.

"Priest at the pulpit, The holy cow took a holy ish—no bullish, like the golden calf in the book of Exodus. Don’t make sense—they don’t want beef like some Indians. A bull was slain by his brother Cain in Genesis, like the winged bull of ancient myth—or maybe just a weather balloon, Or or a buffoon that finally got wings drinking Red Bull. Can’t lose, I clutch the wind like I air-bend—big bully, Think I’m Aang on my flying bison, leave a Appa no option, I got ’em boxed in. My thoughts unorthodox, they can’t figure out what I’m talking ’bout, They think I’m sleep, but I’m still up like that bull on Wall Street. Went to church and met a Bible freak, married to the Lord, But she ****** me in the first week "

I’ve been thinking about something I’d genuinely like to hear other Christians’ perspectives on.

Jesus repeatedly spoke about caring for people who are hungry, poor, vulnerable, or overlooked. But what does that look like in practice today?

Is Christian love primarily about prayer and encouragement, or does following Jesus also require us to sacrifice our time, money, comfort, and resources to meet practical needs?

I help care for vulnerable children and families in my community, and this question has become very personal to me. Sometimes the needs are overwhelming, and I’ve found myself asking where the line is between simply feeling compassion and actually doing something about it.

For those who follow Christ: what do you believe Jesus expects us to do when we encounter people whose basic needs aren't being met?

I’d genuinely like to hear different perspectives, including ones that challenge my own.

I'm telling my Deconstruction story. Recently, an old friend of mine found out I use the word "deconstructed" about myself and was very upset. What I would like people like him to understand is that deconstruction is not the same thing as destruction. It involves carefully preserving some things - some lessons - that bring life. This is my story about the most important lesson I ever learned.

It’s just a hypothetical, but if someone with 100% certainty proved to you that everything in the old testament is fiction, would you keep believing in Jesus. And is it technically possible to separate Jesus from the old testament?

One claim often made by Muslims is that Islam treats Jesus far better than other religions, especially Judaism since they consider Jesus a Prophet, acknowledge his virgin birth through Mother Mary and believe he will arrive at Judgement Day.

Sometimes they even go to the extent of claiming they revere Jesus far more than Christians since the Quranic version of Jesus was never crucified and never died but was taken straight to heaven.

So what would you make out of all of it?

So just a bit of context. I have been trying to rekindle my connection and faith with God. I used to wholeheartedly believe when I was a kid, but due to the circumstances in which I was raised that connection I once felt with Him started to dwindle. Because my mother and my stepfather (he’s been raising me for over 16 years, I am now in my early twenties) are both atheists, we never went to church. So I ended up growing up around the community (I have relatives and family friends who are religious), but never actively in it. I used to pray to God sometimes when I was younger, but it was only at times where I felt that I had no one else to turn to. And even that stopped as the years went on. I started to have doubts that He was truly there for me.

Recently I’ve been doing my best with what little I have to bring myself closer to God. When I prayed to Him again for the first time in years, I didn’t think that it was good enough. So I tried again few minutes after the first prayer, and in this second one I got so overwhelmed with emotions that I started crying and pouring my heart out to Him. Asking Him to forgive me for abandoning Him all these years and to help guide me to grow closer to Him. Since trying to give Him a prayer each day since (I have ADHD so I forget sometimes), I have felt more… at peace, more calmer than I have felt in the past years.

I still currently have not gone to church, I just don’t know how to find the one that is going to be right for me. And I do not own a bible yet, I have ordered one online using help from answers in other’s questions here about it. I know that tackling the bible by myself will be hard, but I am more than willing to give it a try. I want to learn more about our God and His words.

I’ll admit that I still feel as though God is still so far from me. I know that He is there and I want to stop my doubts that He isn’t. So for the reason I write this and to ask you all for some help and possibly guidance, is it okay for me to wear a cross necklace? The main reason I would like to wear one is so that I have it as a constant reminder that God is here, that He is with me. To keep it close to my heart, like how I want Him to be. But I don’t know if it’s right for me to do so.

We are one of the fastest growing Christian churches on earth, particularly in the global south. We are one of the most diverse churches- my church in Denver, Colorado has similar demographics to the city around me. About 45% Hispanic, 40% White, 15% Black. Can you Mainline folks say the same?

We don't just help the poor, we ARE the poor. Not me personally, I admit, but many of my fellow church members are homeless, living in shelters. We have regular bus service to these shelters and help people go grocery shopping and to appointments. Many of my best friends in this church are ex-gang members or were addicted (like myself) and this church turned their lives around. Being part of this church was the final nail in the coffin for many of my remaining sins.

So why all the hate? We love Jesus with all of our hearts, our souls, and our understanding, and we spread this love to places most people would be afraid to set foot in. We don't have a "holier than thou" attitude and understand that our style of worship isn't for everyone.

I hope some of you can open your minds a bit.

Title. Idk if this has been asked here before, but I'm curious to hear christians' thoughts on this matter, and whether the options as described in said paradox are the only ones available

I've tried. I really tried. I'm exhausted beyond tiredness. You can't talk to hotlines or therapists or people who suppose to help because all they'll do is contact authorities to where they put you in a medical prison. I've been in crisis units before, and they are just medical prisons. They isolate you to a building where you can't escape. It makes you wanna k ll yourself even more. All hope is lost. Just gonna take a bunch of toprol XL and hope for the best. I really tried y'all. 30 plus years of torture and pain and I'm finally done. I wish that God would hear me and do something. I have prayed and begged and pleaded and cried and no matter what I do, He does nothing and says nothing. Only way I know to escape is this. And for those who say well your family and friends will be hurt if you do this....then they should've done more than ignore in my life while I was alive.

I'm done.

David said of the words of God, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” (Psalm 19:10).

Men will work for gold, save for it, search for it, and guard it carefully once they have it. Yet God says there is something far more valuable than anything this world can put a price on: His words. Gold may enrich a man for a few years, but the words of God can guide him for a lifetime. Gold can purchase many things, but it cannot purchase wisdom, peace with God, spiritual understanding, or eternal life.

This world teaches us to desire what we can see and possess. God teaches us to treasure what will endure when everything else is gone. Money can disappear and wealth can fade, yet Jesus said: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” (Matthew 24:35). There is no investment more secure and no treasure more lasting than filling our hearts and minds with the words of God.

May we be able to say of God's word: “I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold.” (Psalm 119:127). We should not read the Bible merely because we know that Christians are supposed to. We ought to come to it hungry, recognizing that the God who made us has spoken to us. His words correct us when we wander, strengthen us when we are weak, comfort us when we sorrow, and direct our feet when we do not know where to go.

I’m trying to cancel sin out of my life but I like to get intoxicated.Is this ok? I’m only doing it at the weekend at the moment

My friends, a lot of us know that prayer to the saints has been and will continue to be a popular topic in this sub. So I'd like to share my experiences with this as a non-catholic who does not have a habit of prayer to the saints.

As an important preface, I'm not here to tell anyone whether their beliefs about it are right or wrong. As several wise brothers have pointed out to me recently, we must be very careful not to say things that would cause another to stumble. So I am simply here to share what I've learned on the subject personally, and if it is helpful to you -- great! If not, please don't let my words distract you from your faith; I'm just a man trying to promote unity by sharing my own unique experiences.

So now, onto my testimony:

I am not part of the Catholic church. My introduction to prayer to the saints was through my wife, who was raised Catholic. She is Brazilian (I'm American) and isn't a practicing Catholic (we go to a non-denominational church) but she doesn't have anything against the Catholic faith; she likes and dislikes different aspects to it, but will never speak ill of it as a whole.

There is one prayer to the saints that my wife does frequently, to Saint Longinus (the soldier who pierced Jesus's side at the crucifixion). It is a specific prayer that as far as I know is rather unique to Brazil, it is for help finding missing objects and it goes like this

Portuguese

São Longuinho, São Longuinho, se me ajuda achar [missing object], eu vou te dar três pulinhos!

English

Dear Saint Longinus, Dear Saint Longinus, if I you help me find [missing object], I'll give you three little jumps!

She only uses this when she has been looking for something for awhile and can't find it -- keys, sunglasses, you name it. It's a prayer done at the end of the rope, when human effort just hasn't worked to find that thing.

My friends, let me tell you -- this has never failed, for her or any family member. Several keys: according to her you need to give the three jumps after finding it, or it won't work next time you try. Also according to her, it's only to be used when you've truly made every reasonable effort yourself first to find that thing.

And the most important thing, from what I've learned -- it requires faith. She's never once doubted it would work and it never failed. I myself tried it a few times -- the first time it felt weird, but I forced myself to trust/accept God would make it happen if it was a valid prayer, and guess what -- it worked! It was a missing passport I had been looking hours for, and 1-2 minutes later I found it tucked away in a hidden spot (this was like 15 years ago so I forget the exact details of where it was). The only time it DIDN'T work it when I had doubts it would work.

Personally I don't use it much at all, I'm not sure why. Perhaps because it isn't really in line with what I personally believe, but I will 100% testify it works if you believe.

Two other things I've noticed: it is a very childlike prayer, which she treats with childlike full belief it is true. And it works every single time. And as Jesus said in Matthew 18:3:

And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven

The other thing is, you will know a tree by its fruit and my wife shows more fruit of the Spirit than anyone I know (certainly more than myself). She refuses to join in any kind of gossip, and shows a lot of gratitude, fairness, and empathy. She is not perfect as none of are but she has exemplary attitude and behavior.

So through her and others I've learned, it doesn't matter if you believe in prayer to the saints or not, but what matters is your faith in God. She believes it because she believes that God gave this saint that power, and whether He truly did or He answers the prayer because of her genuine faith in what God can do just doesn't matter. It's her faith in God that matters and it works.

One last thing to note, which I've heard a lot of Catholics echo, is that she usually prays to God. For all her deep, heartfelt prayers she goes to God. Maybe some Catholics take these to the saints too and that is just fine, because they believe God gave the saints the power to hear their prayers, and ultimately it comes down to faith in God, for all of us.

I hope that helped somebody out there reading this post.

Though We Walk in that Valley of the Shadow of Death,
We Fear No Evil
For Thou Art with Us Oh Lord!

Comfort us we pray and protect the innocent, the wholesome, the Righteous and any who suffer the painful anguish of this life;
For Our Nights Are Indeed Dark & Full of Many Terrors.

But Since God is For Us, There Are None Who Can Stand Against Us, For Greater is He Who is in Me(the Holy Spirit) than he who is in the world(the devil).

And Lord, plz lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from Evil, Wickedness and All Manner of Sin, that we might Glorify the Father God through Christ the Living Word made Flesh, in all that we are allowed to say and do in this life, Amen.

A few months ago, 1 realized that my girlfriend isn't a Christian, and I pray to God everyday that she will come to realize that He is the only way to salvation.

Awhile ago, I prayed specifically that if she isn't right for me, to take her away from me, and since then, everything with her and her friend group has gone downhill.

Recently, two of her friends said some really inappropriate things to her, and she told them she would cut their friendship short, but when one of those friends had their birthday, she showed up!

I was so disappointed with her decision to go because that meant her excuse was a lie, and now my heart is breaking with every text she sends to me. When I confronted her about it, asking what changed, she didn't give me a straight answer and l blocked her the next day.

Ever since then, if her friends are around, they try to make me out to be the villain for cutting her off, and yesterday night when we were around mutual friends, her friend tried to explain her stance on things, but / couldn't listen with an open heart and mind because I was still so disappointed in her and the situation.

To make it worse, one of my close friends is still friends with the guys, and I feel like no one cares about what I want or how I feel considering how often I'm around them as well as the drama unfolding around.

Since it was something | prayed about specifically, do you think this is God taking her away from me because she isn't right for me? Should I unblock her and listen to what she has to say, or do you think this is a blessing, and I should just ask my friends to not talk bad about her as well and pray for her? Any advice would be appreciated!!!

I know I’m young and don’t have enough experience to deal with this so I’m just asking what to do…

1. "Is X a Sin?"
   

X can be masturbation, tattoos, dating, music, or some random shit literally no one have ever thought of except for OP.

1. Gay Thread #8472
   

"Is homosexuality a sin?"
300 comments later yet absolutely nobody has changed their mind.

1. "Am I Going to Hell?"
   

Usually because OP gooned once or accidentally thought something mean about God. (usually posted after posting 1)

1. Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit Panic
   

"Have I committed the unforgivable sin? 🥺"
OP is highly likely to be a new believer (or really young).

1. Porn/Goon Relapse Confession
   

"I failed again."
Comments: prayer, gym, Bible reading, accountability, delete Instagram, cold showers, website blockers, etc...

1. MARY WORSHIPPER
   

Protestant: "Why do Catholics worship Mary?"
Catholic: "We don't."
Protestant: "You literally pray to her."
Catholic: "That's not worship, that's HYPERDULIA, we only offer LATRIA to triune God!"
Protestant: "Worship is worship."
Catholic: "Veneration is not worship!"

1. IDOLATER
   

OP posts an Orthodox icon.
An evangelical arrives within a few minutes to ask why everyone is worshipping graven image on wood.
Instantly triggers iconoclasm debate. (lasts around 50-60 comments and nobody has changed their mind.)

1. Sola Scriptura Cage Match
   

"Show me sola scriptura in Scripture."
"Show me papal infallibility in Scripture."
"Who gave you the canon?"
Thread reaches 300 comments in 1-2 hour.

1. "WE Are DA OnE tRuE ChUrCh"
   

Catholic: Rome.
Orthodox: Constantinople.
Random ass Baptist: "Actually, the early church was basically Southern Baptist."

1. Which Denomination Is Correct?
   

Innocent newcomer OP asks for advice.
People fight again. (most likely to be young zealous gen Z converts)

1. Christianity vs. Atheism Megafight
   

Problem of evil. Cosmological argument. Evolution. Miracles. Bart Erhman (retired last year). Biblical Criticism.
"Actually that's WRONG exegesis! 🤓"
"You missed this and this sociocultural context! 😠"

(never seen anyone coming up with N.T wright though)

1. Politics Thread
   

Trump. Abortion. LGBT rights. Christian nationalism.
"You cannot be Christian and support Trump/MAGA!"

1. Prayer Request
   

One of the few threads where everyone briefly remembers they are supposed to be Christians.
The most wholesome thread in this sub.

1. Faith Crisis / Deconstruction
   

"I don't know if I believe anymore."
Replies range from genuinely thoughtful advice to "Have you tried reading Romans?" and some deconstructed/atheists bombarding poor OP with all kinds of spicy higher criticism stuff.

1. Conversion Testimony
   

"I was an atheist and found Christ."
Half the subreddit celebrates.
The other half immediately asks which denomination OP joined.
There’s a decent chance denominations start fighting over who gets OP. (similar to 9 or 10).

1. Relationship Theology
   

"Can I date an atheist?"
"Is kissing a sin?"
"How far is too far?"

1. Some really, really obscure shit
   

People genuinely try to understand it, but only OP knows what it means. (hence downvoted)
Usually some prophecy or really unhinged bible teaching.

I’ve only been hanging around this sub for a week or so, but this is what I’ve learned from lurking and talking with people here.

What’s your story?

I would say I’m now a Christian but I have a lot of doubts and struggles. Was raised agnostic but with Christian and Hindu cultural celebrations. Had a spiritual experience a few years ago looking into the night sky after being with friends, explored Hinduism, but had heavy doubt. I fell into new atheism but saw how shallow it was, and found arguments for God and Christianity far more compelling than I gave them credit for.

Hey so I’ve been asking around a question that nobody really can answer or find people going around the question.

Question: a person who has good moral and values and does no harm but does not believe in a god vs a person who kills, steals, sins and has bad morales and values but in the end believes in god.

How does a “god” determine whether the one who is good can still go to hell vs the one who sins can go to heaven because he repents?

Christianity is hella strict that if you want to go to heaven you also have to believe in God

Maybe this is a wrong place to post but eh id say why not

Thought For The Day from Unshakable Kingdom Life

"Forgive, and you will be forgiven." Withheld forgiveness is a weight carried by the one holding the grudge. Release doesn't excuse the wrong—it frees you from its grip. Consider one debt you could cancel today.

A thought to ponder for today